Nick Clegg's Christmas card has been given a festive twist by his three sons, who used the family's iPad to draw a Santa beard and reindeer horns on a photo of their parents.

The deputy prime minister chose an image of himself and his wife, Miriam González Durántez, laughing on a sofa at home in Putney, London. It echoed David Cameron and Ed Miliband's decisions to send out cards with pictures of themselves and their families on the front.

However, Clegg's sons Antonio, Alberto and Miguel were allowed to inject some fun into the card by giving the photograph a seasonal makeover. They used their digital skills to draw a Santa hat, beard and stocking on their father and a reindeer's horns and nose on their mother.

Last year, Clegg chose a card featuring Father Christmas and a snowman, drawn by an eight-year-old patient at Sheffield Children's hospital in his constituency, where his wife is a patron.

The card shows him during the Labour party's autumn conference, swinging his eldest son Daniel in the air. His wife Justine Thornton is on the other side carrying their younger son Samuel.

Likewise, Cameron chose a simple black and white family portrait featuring him, his wife Samantha and their youngest daughter, Florence, three. In past years the prime minister has chosen summery pictures of the Olympic torch and the royal wedding street party in Downing Street.

The leaders are likely to send their cards to 2,000-plus friends, colleagues, world leaders, donors and journalists, among others.

Nigel Farage, the Ukip leader, suggested he would go for a more traditional look on his Christmas card, rather than printing a picture of his own face.

On Twitter, he said Cameron "could at least have worn a jaunty Santa hat or a tinsel bow tie".